Renegades

Sakuragi wasted no time in making himself comfortable in practice that day.

After seeing many familiar faces and being given a hero's welcome by the Shohoku benchwarmers, Sakuragi quickly assumed the role of a drill sergeant and relentlessly ordered wind sprints and other assorted runs in addition to the normal training regime Miyagi had put into place. Since Miyagi did not reprimand Sakuragi for demanding extra training, everyone had been forced to follow his commands: by the end of the warmup, most of the players were completely winded before the team could even pick up a ball.

"That's it, I need a break," gasped Yasuda Yasuharu, one of the other seniors on the team. The former backup guard remained a source of respect by his Shohoku teammates: in addition to his seniority, his bold personality and his great performance in the Toyotama game in the Nationals had not been forgotten. Despite not being very outspoken, the senior had replaced Kogure's former role as the key locker-room presence of the team, serving to direct and calm the benchwarmers when Miyagi and Mitsui were busy with other duties. Though constant training with Miyagi and increased playing time had improved his game, it was nowhere near enough to make him a legitimate threat to the stronger basketball teams.

Kakuta Satoru nodded in agreement, his head dripping with sweat. The former backup center had been forced into a starting role to fill the void that Sakuragi and Akagi left. Steadily earning the reputation of a decent low-post player, Kakuta's ability to maneuver around the basket had taken great strides forward. However, his small stature compared to bigger and stronger centers made him a rather inefficient "big" man that could only play small stretches in the game before forcing the taller Rukawa to help him on the defensive end. His strength and stamina had improved since the Sannoh game when he filled in for Sakuragi, but like Yasuda, his presence alone wasn't sufficient for a team aiming to make the Nationals.

Sakuragi grinned in reply, clearly not heeding their protests. "If Gori was here, he'd make us run even more!"

Everyone groaned in exasperation. "You're not Gori, so just stop it!"

"Yeah. I'm in charge, remember?" Miyagi said half-heartedly, appearing distracted. The source of his anxiety was clear: Ayako, the team manageress, hadn't yet shown up to the practice.

Miyagi's crush on Ayako had remained strong and now entering his final year, his unrequited feelings had only intensified. Despite this, Miyagi found himself unable to approach her romantically again, for fear of another rejection—this time likely final.

It's my last year to do it, Miyagi thought nervously. This was not the first time he had tried to convince himself to confess again, but it seemed every other practice he tried to draw up enough courage to actually follow through. I have to—

As if on cue Ayako burst into the gym, carrying a large collection of bags. Just her presence instantly changed the atmosphere of the room: her strong-will and energy emanated from her like an aura. Ayako's brown locks danced in front of her pretty face as she heaved a sigh of exhaustion.

"Sorry everyone!" she called, cheerful as ever. She adjusted the bags she was carrying, puffing out a breath of air to push the loose curls from her gaze. "I met a few of my friends along the way, and—"

She stopped mid-sentence upon the sight of Sakuragi. Sakuragi only grinned back in reply, clearly enjoying being the center of attention. In her shock she dropped her bags with a thud on the wooden floors of the gym.

"Yo."

"Sakuragi! Is it really you?" Ayako tentatively confirmed, though she didn't really need to. She quickly strode up to the familiar redhead, an excited smile on her face.

"Have you seen any other Tensais like me?" Sakuragi puffed out his chest in response.

Ayako was held an arm up, trying to estimate Sakuragi's height. "You're a lot taller now! This is great!"

"Isn't it?" Sakuragi joined in Ayako's laughter, the two happy to see one another after their time apart.

"Yeah. He's back," Miyagi commented dryly, stepping in to interrupt the two. Now that Ayako was here, he was able to fall back into business. "Do you think you could review the basics with him?"

"Ryota! Did you just find out?" Ayako whirled around and grabbed Miyagi's arm, drawing a furious blush on the captain's face.

"Uh. Uh. Yeah," Miyagi babbled, losing all coherent thought.

"No more basics," Sakuragi grumbled. Ayako dropped her hand away with a frown, Sakuragi's comment inadvertently rescuing Miyagi.

"Of course we need to review the fundamentals. Especially if you're rejoining the team."

"Hn. You know, the team does seems smaller."

"No," Miyagi spoke up again, recovering now that Ayako no longer had physical contact with him. "It's about the same size. Shiozaki left the team after the Winter Cup, but we got two new rookies. One of them hasn't really shown up, but the other is pretty good. Although he's late too."

"Sakuragi needs to review fundamentals," Ayako insisted again.

"Absolutely," Miyagi agreed, narrowing his eyes at the redhead. "And don't think I won't kick your butt if you don't listen."

"Oh? Since when'd you get so cocky, Ryo-chin?" Sakuragi reared to his full height, detecting the challenge in Miyagi's words.

"Let's scrimmage!" Iishi Kentaro shouted, the words delivered at just the right time. Sasaoka Satoro nearby nodded enthusiastically, neither of the two realizing that they had perhaps saved the basketball club from another fistfight. Now second-years, the two former benchwarmers of the team had ironically remained in the same position, with little playing time to display their skills. However, the two had continually worked hard in practice and were still energetic in their cheering for Shohoku during games.

"Yeah. How about a game?" Miyagi smiled, keeping his gaze locked on Sakuragi. Even though the two could be called friends, he knew that he had to assert his captain role early on, particularly around a troublemaker like Sakuragi.

"Everyone divide into groups of 3 on 3, half-court games!" Miyagi shouted before Sakuragi could answer. While the others now beginning to set up teams, the gym doors opened again with a creak.

Gangly arms trailing at his side, a new player strode at a slow, almost lazy pace towards the others. Although wiry, there was still a layer of toned muscle over his body that showed strong conditioning. His face was decorated with bandages and his arms were similarly wrapped to cover up what seemed to be cuts. His black hair was cut relatively short, nearly to the point of Sakuragi's monk-like buzz cut a year ago. He easily towered over most of the other players on the team, save for Sakuragi himself. His relaxed expression and seemingly easygoing saunter seemed lackadaisical. However, his gaze was anything but; though blank, behind them lay a fierce competitive spirit, a type of frightening determination that the other Shohoku starters seemed to share.

He raised a hand in apology once he was within earshot, the other holding his schoolbag.

"Sorry I'm late, captain."

"It's all right. Just make sure you don't do it often," Miyagi replied, tone softening. Unlike the way he conversed with Sakuragi, Miyagi treated the new player with far more courtesy.

"I won't," the teen agreed. Upon catching Ayako's gaze, he quickly bowed in thanks.

"Thank you for giving me those bandages the other day, Ayako-senpai. You really didn't have to."

Ayako frowned, giving the new arrival a serious look.

"Take better care of yourself. I wouldn't have believed you had gotten those playing basketball." Like Miyagi, Ayako seemed to get along with the new player well.

The rookie bowed again, respecting her words. Miyagi cleared his throat and patted the taller player on the shoulder, shooting a glance over at Sakuragi.

"This is that new guy I was telling you about," Miyagi said, introducing the player to the redhead.

A glint of recognition surfaced in the freshman's gaze.

"Oh. I think I remember you being mentioned. Sakuragi? Sakuragi… uh…hm…"

Sakuragi's chest swelled with a bit pride at being recognized— though the rookie was still struggling over his name, he had been recognized all the same.

"Sakuragi Hanamichi! Don't forget that! My genius is already famous around here though, I see!"

"Yeah," the rookie offered him a wan smile, leaving it at that. He extended a hand in greeting.

"Excuse my straightforwardness, but you can just call me Hiroshi. Pleased to meet you, Sakuragi-senpai."

"Got it!" Sakuragi laughed, slapping hands with Hiroshi. The exchange allowed Miyagi to heave a small sigh of relief, which the others thankfully didn't notice. Though Miyagi hadn't expected any problems between the two players, it was nonetheless reassuring to see that Hiroshi was getting along with the difficult redhead.

Wish Hiroshi's first meeting with Rukawa had been this stress-free, Miyagi thought to himself. Before he could mull things over further, Mitsui strode up with a ball in hand.

"Let's just start playing. I think this is a good chance for the rookie here to get acquainted with some real basketball. Oi, Rukawa!"

Rukawa, who had been shooting at the other side of the court, made his way to the vice-captain. Unlike the others, he had not been willing to take part in any of Sakuragi's warm-up orders.

"3 on 3, right?" Mitsui confirmed, shooting Miyagi a knowing glance.

"All right," Miyagi grinned, instantly picking up on Mitsui's train of thought. "How about me, Sakuragi, and Mitsui against Yasuda, Hiroshi, and Rukawa?"

Sakuragi chuckled, pleased at Miyagi's choices for teams. Excellent… I get to show my skills to that wild fox immediately!

Ayako, as if reading Miyagi's mind, handed him a whistle which he casually tossed over to Kakuta nearby. "Kakuta, could you play referee as usual?" Miyagi asked despite clearly having made up his mind. Kakuta nodded, moving off to fetch a ball.

"Putting Hiroshi and Rukawa together? Pitting Sakuragi against Rukawa?" Mitsui whispered to Miyagi, seemingly not as confident in Miyagi's decision as Sakuragi was. The others were murmuring amongst each other, obviously now highly interested in watching this star-studded matchup instead of actually playing with each other.

"Aya-chan told me they get along fine now. And you want to see Sakuragi and Rukawa play against each other just as much as me," Miyagi replied in a hiss, trying to look as casual as possible. Mitsui could say no more, but seemed to trust Miyagi's judgment as Kakuta returned with a ball. The players moved to their spots around the mid-court line, almost as if they had choreographed it before. Sakuragi and Rukawa met at the center, ready for the jump ball. Though the two didn't exchange insults, their reunion on the courts seemed to fill the atmosphere with invisible electricity and intensity.

Hiroshi quickly threw his school belongings into the corner of the gym and readied himself, not even bothering to change into his practice clothes or warm himself up; he already had his game shoes on, though no one could guess when he had put them on. Miyagi and Mitsui both focused on the ball, their muscles twitching in anticipation. Yasuda, who had joined the group, kept his eyes glued on the duo at mid-court.

Without warning, the ball flew into the air. The two rivals soared after it, reaching to grasp victory.